Choosing your perfect tour type.We offer just about every type of adventure imaginable. Explore with other likeminded travellers on our organised group tours, alternatively try a private departure or talk to our tailormade team if you want more flexibility.

Explore the world with your family.Our Explore family adventure holidays are designed for families looking for a fun and memorable holiday, allowing you to explore exotic and unique destinations, with all of the logistics taken care of.

The one stop shop for all things special. Keep up to date with our latest special offers, promotions and incentives. Sign up for our newsletter and be the first to hear about great new tours, competitions, special offers and other exclusive deals. Sign up now!

Welcome to Explore - The Adventure Travel Experts.Explore has been running small group responsible adventures for nearly 35 years so you can be confident that you are in safe hands. Browse to find out more about Explore, our staff, tour leaders and values.

Family Tour Of Jordan

Lost cities, Crusader castles and Indiana Jones film settings are all part of this family holiday to Jordan. We visit the ruins of the Roman city of Jerash and explore the spectacular lost city of Petra. We camp in the dramatic desert of Wadi Rum, discover the Crusader castle of Kerak and travel to the Dead Sea to experience the sensation of floating on the surface of its salty waters.

Tour Highlights

Petra - Visit the spectacular 'Rose Red City' of the ancient Nabateans, featured in an Indiana Jones movie

Little Petra - Have a private dinner under the stars of Petra

Wadi Rum - Take an optional camel trek or four-wheel drive in the impressive desert landscape of Wadi Rum and camp under the stars

Wadi Musa - have lunch with a local family and learn about their lifestyle and traditions

Dead Sea - Experience the buoyant saline waters at the lowest place on earth and have a mud bath

Bedouin - Listen to stories about the generations of Bedouins who lived in Wadi Rum.

Aqaba - Swim and snorkel in the turquoise waters of the Red Sea

Itinerary

1

Join tour Amman

Join the tour today in Amman, the capital of Jordan. It is a fascinating city of contrasts - a unique blend of old and new. The Temple of Hercules is in the commercial heart of the city along with ultra-modern buildings, hotels, smart restaurants, art galleries and boutiques that rub shoulders comfortably with traditional coffee shops and tiny artisans' workshops. The people of Amman are multicultural, multi-denominational, well-educated and extremely hospitable. They welcome visitors and take pride in showing them around their fascinating and vibrant city.

Overnight: Standard HotelSwimming Pool Available

Included Meals:
None

2

Visit Jerash and Mosaic Workshop Visit

This morning we drive northwards to ancient Jerash, located in the Gilead Hills. One of Jordan's major attractions, it is a beautifully maintained Roman city, considered to be the best preserved of the Decapolis, a confederation of ten Middle Eastern cities under the Emperor Pompey. One of the highlights of the Middle East, a triple arch gateway, gives way to colonnaded streets, theatres, temples and baths. It is estimated that this represents only about 10% of the entire city, the rest is still to be uncovered. We spend several hours exploring the site with the option to watch a 'Roman Gladiator Show' (seasonal). We then travel onto the town of Madaba which was once a one of the most important Christian communities east of the Jordan River. Today it harbours a collection of extraordinary mosaics, including the incredible 6th century Great Map of Palestine. Discovered in 1896, it contains detailed depictions of the important pilgrimage sites throughout the Holy Land, including Jerusalem, and is believed to be the oldest surviving map of Palestine in existence. We watch and learn the procedures of mosaic production from the specialists before returning to Amman. If time permits, you will be able to wander around the streets of the capital and discover it's unique blend of old and new. The Temple of Hercules is in the commercial heart of the city along with ultra-modern buildings, hotels, smart restaurants, art galleries and boutiques that all rub shoulders comfortably with traditional coffee shops and tiny artisans' workshops.

The downtown area is much older and more traditional with smaller businesses producing and selling everything from fabulous jewellery to everyday household items. The people of Amman are multicultural, multi-denominational, well-educated and extremely hospitable.

Overnight: Standard HotelSwimming Pool Available

Included Meals:
Breakfast

3

Morning ‘swim’ in the Dead Sea, drive via Kerak to Petra

This morning we drive to the shimmering Dead Sea. At nearly 400m below sea level, it is the lowest point on earth. Surrounded by barren hills, this unique body of water has an amazingly high salt content (33%) which means no animal life survives and that it is almost impossible to sink! But don't take our word for it, try for yourself. There is also access to a hotel pool, beach, showers and the hotel restaurants and bars. We then head south following one of the oldest trade routes in the world, the King's Highway, which once carried the richly laden caravans of Solomon. We reach Kerak, imposingly positioned on a hilltop, which became famous in the time of the Crusades as one of a chain of fortresses in the Holy War against Islam. Built in 1132 by Baldwin of Jerusalem, a Crusader king, the castle finally fell to the forces of Saladin himself and who was so impressed with the courage shown by its defenders that he set them free. From Kerak we continue south to Petra, without doubt one of the most famous and awe inspiring sites in the Middle East.

Overnight: Standard HotelSwimming Pool Available

Included Meals:
Breakfast

4

Walking tour of Petra and Bedouin style dinner in Little Petra

Abandoned centuries ago, Petra was the rock cut stronghold of the Nabateans (and the final resting place of the Holy Grail - according to Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade). Surrounded by imposing mountains and approached through a deep, narrow cleft in the rocks known as the Siq, it is a unique and unforgettable place. Enhanced by the play of light and shadow, the sights are an altogether overwhelming experience. In the morning we walk through the Siq and enter this lost city, sighting the famous temple façade of the Treasury as we approach. A guided walking tour will take us to some of the key parts of this remarkable site after which the rest of the day is free to walk through one of the most impressive and exciting attractions of ancient history at leisure.

We return to Petra this evening to experience one of the highlights of the holiday, a private dinner in nearby Little Petra with a traditional Bedouin style setting inside or outside a cave (depending upon weather conditions). Imagine living among the ancient Nabatean people, with a traditional barbecue dinner including local mezze, seasonal fruit and desserts as we sit around a camp fire on Bedouin carpets with a blanket of stars overhead.

Overnight: Standard HotelSwimming Pool Available

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Dinner

5

Free in Petra, dinner with a local family

Today you have a free at Petra. Returning to the city you can climb steep paths to the sacrificial 'High Places' (altars) and hike to the top of Jebel Harin (1396m) for a stunning view over Wadi Araba and the Negev Desert. The Monastery is the largest of Petra's monuments and certainly worth the steep climb up to it. Towering to a height of 40m, its doorway alone measures 8m in height, dwarfing anyone framed within it. It is a place to lose oneself in the atmosphere of the past.

We visit a local family in Wadi Musa which is close to Petra for dinner and to learn about the local way of life and traditions. Your tour leader will explain how the meal is prepared as well as how local Bedouin tea and other traditional dishes are made. Dinner is likely to be a national dish of the country, such as Mansaf, which is lamb cooked in a sauce of fermented dried yogurt and served with rice and fried vegetables.

Overnight: Standard HotelSwimming Pool Available

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Dinner

6

Four wheel drive to Wadi Rum and Bedouin experience

We spend today experiencing the beautiful area of Wadi Rum. We head off south for an exciting half-day four-wheel drive through stunning desert scenery. Travelling via the old Roman road, we explore the lesser-known northern areas of Wadi Rum, seeing natural rock bridges and viewing incredible rock sculptures on the way to our overnight camp. After lunch we rendezvous for an unforgettable trek, either on foot or you have the option of taking a camel. We ride and/or walk for about 2 hours through a landscape of sandstone mountains, white and pink coloured sands and a desert that is dripping in the 'Lawrence of Arabia' legend with scenes of the famous film being shot here. The desert has been inhabited by the nomadic Bedouin people for generations and we discover how the Bedouins of Wadi Rum live with explanations from our guide and the opportunity to visit a local Bedouin family and share a cup of tea with them. We learn about the Bedouin habits and way of life, their culture and the stories that have been passed down from previous generations. They believe that Wadi Rum is beautiful due to its magical landscape, and so we include time in this area with few other visitors which help us discover the silence and majesty of the desert. The Bedouin culture is also famous for story-telling and we get the chance to listen to stories about the past days and generations of those who used to live in the vast desert of Wadi Rum.

Before our night under the starry sky, we may be lucky enough to witness a spectacular desert sunset. We sleep in a single, large, traditional goat hair tent (the best protection against typical desert extremes of hot and cold) which is laid out with rugs, mattresses, pillows and sleeping bags. The evening is normally spent around a campfire, with spectacular desert stars overhead: Washing facilities and WC are available close by.

Overnight: Basic Tented Camp

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

7

Travel to Aqaba with afternoon free to spend on the beach

Leaving Wadi Rum, we drive to Aqaba on the Red Sea. Aqaba is Jordan's only seaport and has had a long history of occupation and trade. King Solomon's ships left here loaded with copper whilst the Edomites and the Nabateans used the port as part of a trade route from Damascus to Egypt. The Roman 10th Legion was stationed here and during the 12th century the Crusaders made good use of Aqaba's strategic position. During World War I, the Arab troops under Prince Faisal used the fort as a base for attacks on the Ottoman forces. After checking into our hotel, the rest of the day is free for you to relax.

Overnight: Standard HotelSwimming Pool Available

Included Meals:
Breakfast

8

Free day in Aqaba with optional sailing and snorkelling

Today you have a free day where you may wish to enjoy the splendid coral reefs and clear warm waters for which Aqaba is famed. Aqaba has numerous watersports activities including sailing, snorkelling and glass bottom boats for hire, so there should be something for everyone.

Overnight: Standard HotelSwimming Pool Available

Included Meals:
Breakfast

9

Tour ends Amman

Today we drive back to Amman via the Desert Highway to catch our flight home. The tour ends at Amman airport.

Tour notes

Each departure date has it's own dedicated tour note, detailing all you need to know about that tour. Whether you've already booked, or weighing up your options, please choose carefully the relevant itinerary for you.

We have the following different versions of the Family The Lost City Of Petra tour available at present.

Customer rating:Family The Lost City Of Petra4.5 out of
5
based on
5 ratings.
Read reviews

Why Book this tour

Jordan will be of interest to any family who enjoy desert landscapes, amazing monuments and cultural interaction - with dinner with a local family plus in Petra itself as well as having stories told by a Bedouin tribesperson in the desert, Jordan offers a great 'Lawrence of Arabia' experience with time at the beach to relax at the end of your journey.